Egyptian president proposes new cease-fire truce as CIA chief in Mideast for talks

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is pushing Israel and Hamas to agree to a two-day cease-fire in a move to get hostages released amid top international talks on the conflict in Doha, Qatar, on Sunday.

Neither side appears to have agreed to any temporary cease-fire deal or hostage release despite the limited proposal that was pushed for the freeing of four Israelis – abducted by Hamas over a year ago – and some Palestinian prisoners, though the exact number remains unclear, reported Reuters.

Al-Sisi, who spoke during a press conference in Cairo alongside Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, further suggested that if Israel and Hamas agree to the temporary truce, talks on a permanent cease-fire should then continue 10 days after.

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His proposal coincided with a major meeting Sunday in Doha where CIA Director William Burns and Mossad Chief David Barnea met with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammad Al-Thani. 

It is unclear why the Egyptian leader was not included in the Doha talks, as Egypt, alongside Qatar, has been working in coordination with the U.S. to end the fighting that is estimated by the Hamas-run Ministry of Health and backed up by the United Nations to have killed up to 43,000 Palestinians in the last year and bring home the 101 Israeli and American hostages still in captivity. 

An official with knowledge of the cease-fire talks told Fox News Digital the focus of the Doha meeting involving the heads of the U.S. and Israeli spy agencies, was to discuss plans involving “a short-term cease-fire in Gaza that would last less than a month.”

“U.S. officials believe that if a short-term deal can be reached, it could lead to a more permanent agreement,” the official said. 

Details regarding any short-term truce remain nil, though the official said they will likely include a hostage release in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israel, as well as an increase in humanitarian aid to Gaza. 

“It is too early to say what the ratio of hostages to prisoners would be or what category of Israeli hostages would be for release,” the official told Fox News. “Last week, during his trip, [Secretary of State Antony] Blinken got agreement from the Israelis to attend this round of talks and pitched it in Doha.”

“The Americans hope is that after [former Hamas leader Yahya] Sinwar’s death, Hamas will be more willing to reach an agreement,” the official added. 

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Finding a deal that both Israel and Hamas will agree to has become nearly insurmountable given that neither side appears willing to give up security interests in Gaza. 

However, according to a statement released by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office on Monday, the officials in Doha “discussed a new unified outline that combines previous proposals and also takes into account the main issues and recent developments in the region.”

“In the coming days, the discussions between the mediators and Hamas will continue to examine the feasibility of talks and a continued attempt to promote a deal,” the prime minister’s office said.

Qatari and Egyptian mediators will continue to work with Hamas to address the “feasibility of a deal and work to close the gap between the two sides,” an official with knowledge of the Sunday talks told Fox News Digital.

Humanitarian aid to Palestinians has become increasingly precarious as Israel has once again escalated its offensive operations in Northern Gaza with the aim of rooting out Hamas attempts to regroup.

The Israeli Defense Force reportedly said soldiers captured around 100 suspected Hamas terrorists following a raid on Kamal Adwan Hospital in the Jabalia refugee camp, reported Reuters. 

However, as the operations once again escalate, civilians continue to find themselves caught in the middle. According to the Palestinian Civil Emergency Service, roughly 100,000 people have become trapped in Jabalia, and the nearby cities of Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun are without medical or food supplies, though Fox News Digital could not independently verify these figures.

The U.N. – which has come under fire recently after more Hamas fighters were found to have embedded themselves in the humanitarian agency – once again condemned Israel’s violence against civilian populations.

U.N. Secretary General António Guterres’ office called Israel’s recent attacks in northern Gaza “unbearable” and said the conflict is being “waged with little regard for the requirements of international humanitarian law.”

“The Secretary-General is shocked by the harrowing levels of death, injury and destruction in the north, with civilians trapped under rubble, the sick and wounded going without life-saving health care, and families lacking food and shelter, amid reports of families being separated, and many people detained,” U.N. spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said in a statement reported by Reuters. 

Israel, for its part, has denied outwardly blocking humanitarian shipments and argued that Hamas chooses to embed itself in civilian life, using Palestinians as human shields. 

Yonat Friling contributed to this report.

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